Bonds of Comfort and Pain
by Red Witch
Summary: Todd, Xi and Fred tease Lance then comfort him when he has an attack. Lots of friendship fluff inside.


**I don't own X-Men Evolution characters…you know the drill by now. Well this story takes place in the timeframe of 'An Avalanche of Avalanches'. Just some friendship sappiness that came into my head. **

**Bonds of Comfort and Pain**

"Here Kitty! Kitty! Kitty!" Todd laughed as he hopped around the room. "Here Kitty! Kitty!"

"I'm not listening!" Lance told him as he fixed his hair. "I am not going to pay attention to you!" 

"Here Kitty!" Fred poked his head into Lance's room. 

"Not you too!" Lance groaned. "Just let me get ready for my date with Kitty in peace will ya?" 

"Why are you saying 'Here Kitty'?" Xi asked as he walked in. "I don't get it."

"It's a stupid joke Xi," Lance said. 

"It's quite clever actually," Todd remarked. "See Pryde's name is Kitty right?" 

"I am aware of that," Xi nodded. 

"Well if you own a cat and if you want to call him or something you say 'Here Kitty, kitty," Fred explained. 

"If you say that a cat comes to you?" Xi blinked. At this Fred and Todd giggled. "What did I say." 

"Well sometimes," Todd grinned. "But when you phrase it like that it also has a slightly dirty connotation if you get my drift."

"No I don't," Xi was confused. 

"DON'T TELL HIM!" Lance snapped. "I'm warning you right now Toad! Do not infect Xi with your diseased little mind!" 

"You mean it's sexual?" Xi asked.

"You guys are real perverts you know that?" Lance snapped. "Dirty minded little perverts! Don't pay any attention to them Xi." 

"Us?" Todd grinned. "We're not the ones calling out Kitty's name at night." 

"I do not!" Lance snapped. "And even if I did it's none of your business!" 

"Why would he do that?" Xi asked. "Is he having bad dreams about her?"

"Oh he's having dreams all right," Fred chuckled. "But they ain't exactly bad huh Lance?" 

"You guys are really asking for it!" Lance snapped making a fist. "If you insist on having these conversations the least you can do is wait until I am out of the room or something!" 

"But it wouldn't be as much fun if we did," Todd grinned.

"Not to mention educational," Xi grinned. "Here Kitty, Kitty…" 

"Why are you doing that now?" Lance groaned.

"I didn't want to be left out," Xi grinned. 

"Of course not," Lance groaned. "I hope the two of you are happy! See what you did? Xi doesn't need to know about that kind of stuff and well you two…you….you…"

"Go on Lance there's a sentence in there somewhere," Fred chuckled. 

"Well you two are immature puerile jerks who have their minds in the gutter," Lance snapped.

"You're right," Fred said.

"We should be more sensitive to your feelings," Todd said.

They both grinned at each other. "HERE KITTY, KITTY!" They both shouted gleefully. 

"That's it! I'm gonna pound you guys into the ground!" Lance roared as he went to tackle them. 

Too late he realized that tackling someone like Fred was not the smartest thing to do. Fred easily grabbed him by the collar. "You were saying?" Fred smirked. 

"Banzai!" Todd tackled Lance from behind just as Fred let him go. 

"Why do you guys torture me like this?" Lance groaned.

"Because it's fun!" Todd laughed as he clung to his back and mussed his hair. "We like to tease you." 

"Oh yeah?" Lance threw him off. "Well how would you like it if I made some 'Little Mermaid' comments about Al huh?" 

Todd harmlessly bounced off the wall and onto his bed. "I'd say that you were just being frustrated because I get more action than you do."

"HA GOOD ONE TOAD!" Fred guffawed. 

"Maybe Todd should give you pointers," Xi suggested. At this Fred and Todd laughed.

This however enraged Lance. "DIE!" He shouted as he charged them. 

Todd easily dodged him. And Xi decided to have a little fun. He charged at Lance head on and tackled him first. "GET OFF ME!" Lance groaned as Xi easily pinned him.

"Looks like you're the one who's gonna die! Let's tickle torture him!" Todd laughed. The he noticed something. "Xi what is it? You got a funny look in your eye."

Xi looked intensely at Lance as he held his arms. "Xi you're creeping me out," Lance grumbled. "Let me up will ya?" Xi did so. "What's the matter." 

"Lance," Xi told him. "Your powers are going into flux again. Very soon."

"What do you mean?" Todd asked. "Does that mean he's gonna have another attack?"

"I'm afraid so," Xi said.

"No…" Lance's face fell. The thought of him losing control and having another attack terrified him. 

"But the medication…" Fred started to ask.

"It doesn't stop all the attacks," Lance shook as he sat down. "Just lessens them." 

"Go get Lifeline Toad," Fred said. "Maybe he knows what to do?" 

"I'm on it," Todd hopped away.

"Hey Lance maybe Xi's mistaken or something," Fred put his hand on Lance's shoulder. 

"That…could be a possibility," Xi said carefully. 

"But it's not is it?" Lance looked at Xi. 

"I didn't say that," Xi told him. 

"Xi we both know that you're pretty good when it comes to figuring out what powers a mutant has and when they develop," Lance said. "You can read gene codes by touch."

"It's still not perfect," Xi said. 

"But it's pretty near perfect isn't it?" Lance asked softly. 

Xi looked away. "They…Cobra made us practice that technique since birth. We had to be skilled at it." 

Lance frowned. He really didn't want to know the reasons why Cobra would do such a thing. "So you are good at it."

"Let Lifeline look at you," Xi said. "There is still a slight chance…" 

"Yeah right," Lance sighed. 

Soon they were in the hospital ward of the Pit. Lifeline had done some tests on Lance. Lance sat there on the bed wearing hospital pajamas. Fred, Todd, Xi and Roadblock were there as well. "So what's the diagnosis?" Lance asked Lifeline, even though he knew the outcome. 

"Sorry Avalanche," Lifeline shook his head. "I guess you're grounded this week." 

"Wonderful," Lance grumbled. 

"It may not be so bad," Lifeline said. "Even though we don't know exactly when it will happen, we can at least ease your symptoms so it won't be as bad as previous attacks. In a way, you were lucky Xi figured it out when he did." 

"Yeah thanks a lot Xi," Lance sighed. "Now I get to stay in the hospital all week. Whoopee." 

"Maybe not," Lifeline said. "Depends on how soon the attack is and how severe." 

"You think we should call back Spirit?" Roadblock asked. "I know he's on some kind of training mission."

"Nah don't," Lance waved. "I don't wanna bother him. He's got stuff to do. He'll be back by the end of the week anyway."

"Okay kid your call," Roadblock shrugged. 

They left Lance alone in the room. He sighed and lay back on the bed. "Perfect," He grumbled. "Just perfect. Well at least Kitty won't be able to see it. That's something I guess." 

Then Fred, Todd and Xi walked in. "What are you guys doing back here?" Lance asked.

"We had a talk with Lifeline," Fred grinned. 

"We get to stay with you and take care of you until you feel better," Todd said. 

"Lucky me," Lance rolled his eyes. 

"You can be sarcastic all you like, we still won't leave you," Xi said.

Lance sighed. "You don't have to do this you know." 

"I'm the one who put you in here," Xi told him. "I'm responsible for you."

"That wasn't your fault," Lance said. 

"I know. But I still want to watch out for you," Xi said.

"Yeah I mean it's not like I got a hot date or anything anyway," Fred shrugged. 

"Face it Lance you're stuck with us," Todd grinned. 

"We're gonna make you nice and comfy," Fred fluffed his pillow. 

"Oh goody," Lance groaned. "Well if you wanna do something useful, could one of you guys call Kitty and tell her I won't be able to see her for a while?"

"Sure Lance I'll do it," Todd shrugged. "Hey maybe when she finds out how sick you are…"

"NO!" Lance snapped. "Don't tell her that! She…well…" 

"You mean she still don't know about your attacks?" Todd's eyes widened.

"No," Lance said. "And I don't want her to know. I just can't take it if she…I can't stand being in that state let alone…"

"What exactly does Kitty know anyway, just so we'll know in the future?" Xi asked.

"Well," Lance ran his fingers through his hair in thought. "She knows I'm on medication and can get sick but…she doesn't know how it happens. Or how bad it can get. I just don't like to bring it up okay?" 

"Yeah buddy we understand," Todd put his hand on his shoulder. "Tell you what, I'll call her and make up some excuse okay?" 

"Thanks Toad," Lance sighed. 

Fred frowned. "Lance you're not mad at us are you?"

"For what?" Lance raised his eyebrows.

"For making you mad and sending you to the doctor," Fred fidgeted. 

"Freddy that's not what got me stuck in the hospital," Lance groaned. 

"You know we only tease you about her because we think you can do better right?" Fred asked. 

"Yeah Freddy I know," Lance rubbed his eyes, not having the energy to get into this particular conversation at the moment. "I know you didn't mean it." 

Todd picked up on this. "Hey I got an idea, why don't we play a game to pass the time yo?" 

"Fine," Lance sighed. "Beats waiting anyway." 

An hour later…

"For the last time Blob there is no bathroom in Clue!" Lance groaned. "Why is it every time we play this game we have to have the same conversation."

"It's stupid that they don't have a bathroom in Clue," Fred frowned. 

"I agree it does not make any sense for a mansion to be without plumbing facilities," Xi said. 

"Yeah and you can kill people in a lot more ways in the bathroom," Todd piped up. "You can drown 'em or electrocute 'em or stab 'em with a razor…"

"Thanks for giving me those ideas guys," Lance rolled his eyes. "I swear my headaches are bad enough…." Then he blinked. He stopped talking.

"Lance?" Todd asked. "Lance? What's a matter?" 

Then Lance screamed in pain. The ground started to shake. "Oh no!" Fred yelled. "Toad get Lifeline!" 

Lifeline burst in with Bree. "We figured it out," He said. "Toad! Hold him down! Bree prepare the IV stat!" Lifeline quickly began to work on him.

Soon the three of them were shooed away outside so they could take care of Lance in private. Fred and Todd sat down on a bench while Xi casually went off to get sodas for them. "He's gonna be okay right?" Fred asked. 

"Of course he is," Todd said with a certainty he didn't feel. "It's not like this hasn't happened before. He'll be fine yo. You know Lance. He's tough. He's always been tough. Even this…even this won't keep him down. You'll see." 

"It's not when he's screaming when I really get scared," Fred said. "It's when he forgets us."

"But it's not permanent. He usually remembers us right away," Todd said. 

"I hate it when he gets like that," Fred said softly. 

"Me too," Todd replied in an equally soft voice. 

"Here," Xi walked over and gave them all sodas. "You should drink something. It will help keep your energy up." 

"Yo Joe cola?" Todd smirked. "Good thing Pietro's doing some extra training this weekend. He'd really get wired on this stuff." 

"You think he would have known better not to try and shoot the Blind Master with a water pistol," Xi shook his head.

"Well he's learning that lesson now," Fred chuckled. The all laughed softly for a minute then stopped. 

Xi looked at them. "You two…you two are closer to Lance than Pietro is."

"How can you tell?" Todd asked.

"Sometimes I see how the three of you look at each other," Xi said. "Like you can communicate things without speaking. Quicksilver seems oblivious to it." 

"Well I guess you can say the three of us have a lot in common," Todd said. "We're all orphans. Well pretty much."

"Technically I'm not," Fred told them. "I think."

"You think?" Todd looked at him. 

"I got a mom and dad out there somewhere. Just don't know where they are," Fred shrugged. "And to tell the truth I don't really care."

"See the three of us really bonded I guess more than we did with Pietro," Todd said. "We have a lot in common. Sometimes we just know stuff without saying a word."

Xi nodded. "It used to be like that with my unit too." 

"Xi you're part of the family now, don't ever forget that," Todd told him. "Just like Lance is." 

Lifeline walked out. "Is he gonna be okay?" Todd asked immediately.

"He'll be fine," Lifeline sighed. "We were lucky this time. Thanks to Xi's advance warning we were able to run some tests on him. Those tests helped us when we had to give him the medication. It wasn't as bad as it could have been. He's still going to be weak for a day or so."

"Can we see him now?" Fred asked.

"He's going to be out cold until tomorrow morning," Lifeline told them. "You three should go home and get some rest. You can see him tomorrow."

"Can't we stay anyway?" Todd asked. "At least one of us should be here with him. Can't leave him alone."

Lifeline gently put his hand on Todd's shoulder. "Toad I promise he won't be alone. Either Bree or myself will sit with him tonight to monitor his condition. Just in case there are complications. I do want you guys back here around eight in the morning. He should be coming out of it by then. When you guys are with him he recovers much faster. Don't worry, I've already talked to Roadblock and he said it would be okay." 

"Thanks Lifeline," Todd sighed. "We'll be back here first thing in the morning."

They went back home and tried to get some sleep with very little success. Still lack of sleep didn't stop them as they returned. "He should be waking up at any moment," Lifeline told him. "Nothing happened during the night." 

"Xi you'd better stay out here until he remembers you," Todd said. "No offense but…"

"None taken," Xi nodded. "It is a wise decision. I will see him when he is ready." 

Todd and Fred nodded and went inside. Lance lay there on the bed. "He looks so…pale," Fred said softly.

"It takes a lot out of him," Todd said. "Lifeline once told me it was a radical shift in his body chemistry." He held Lance's hand. Soon Lance began to stir. "He's waking up."

Lance's eyes opened and gazed at them. "Lance?" Fred asked softly. "You okay buddy?" 

"Where am I?" Lance whimpered. "Who…who are you?" 

"We're your family yo," Todd said gently. "It's all right Lance. Don't be scared of us. We're here to help you." 

"Help me?" Lance looked confused. "What happened? Where…?" 

"You were hurt but you're better now," Todd told him. "It's okay. You're just a little shaken up. You'll be fine." 

"Just relax Lance," Fred told him. "It'll come back to you." 

"I…I don't remember," Lance started to shake. "I…I…"

"It's okay," Fred said. "Don't worry about it. You will." 

Todd put his hand on Lance's shoulder. "Just take a deep breath okay?" Todd told him. "And concentrate. What's the very last thing you remember?"

"I…I can't…" 

"Yes you can," Todd encouraged him. "Now think. Before the pain and the hurting. What was before that?"

"How do you know?" Lance looked at him. 

"I told you we're your family," Todd said. "Now think. You can do it. You've done it before."

"Maybe this will help," Fred held up the Clue game. "Do you remember this?"

Lance looked at it. "It's a board game. So?"

"We were playing this," Fred explained. "And we were asking you why there weren't any bathrooms in it."

"There just aren't I guess. What does this…?" Lance stopped and stared at the game. "Wait a minute. It's coming to me. Freddy? Todd?" He looked around at them. "Or is it Blob and Toad? Why?"

"Blob and Toad are our codenames," Todd told him. "What's your codename? Think hard. You can do it."

Lance frowned. "Avalanche…" He said softly. "My name's Avalanche. I'm a mutant…"

"I think it's coming back to him," Fred told Todd. 

"There was somebody else here too," Lance held his head. "Green with…scales and gold stuff around the eyes."

"That's Xi," Todd told him. "He's waiting outside. He didn't want to scare you." 

"So he's real," Lance blinked. 

"That's right," Todd nodded. 

"Can I see him?" Lance asked. 

"You sure?" Todd asked. Lance nodded. "Okay, Freddy go get Xi will ya?"

Fred did so. Xi walked in. Lance stared at him. "You're Xi…" Lance looked at him. He started to reach out to touch him. Xi let him touch his arm. "You are real. I know you…I know all of you."

"Well that's a relief," Todd sighed. 

"I'm tired," Lance sighed as he slumped forward. 

Xi took Lance in his arms and sat on the bed. "Do you want us to leave?" He asked.

"No," Lance said in a fearful voice. 

"Okay we'll stay with you," Todd said. "Hey Freddy, go tell Lifeline that Lance is starting to remember okay?"

"Yeah I'll get him something to eat too," Fred nodded. "Maybe they have donuts." 

"That's our Freddy," Todd shook his head as Fred went out the door. 

Lance allowed Xi to hold him and gently pat him on the back. As Xi put his hand to Lance's forehead and smoothed away his long bangs Lance could feel the sensation of his scaled skin to his. It didn't feel like anything he had ever felt before. It was soft and supple like smooth leather, but silkier. A soft rush of air left his mouth, indicating he was pleased at the attention being given to him. 

Lance let out another whimper of contentment when Todd patted him on the back as well. It just felt right, being with Xi and Todd. Both of them watching out for him. Like brothers protecting a younger, defenseless sibling. It didn't bother him to let the younger mutants temporarily usurp his role of 'big brother'. 

A thought mused in Lance's mind. "Xi?" He asked. "How old are you?"

Xi considered this. "I believe that I am about thirteen years old," He admitted. 

"That's all?" Todd asked. "You look older." 

"Well my growth was hastened in the lab I was created in," Xi told him. 

"Well that makes sense I guess," Lance shrugged. 

"You sure you don't want anything?" Todd asked.

"No," Lance shook his head. "Just keep doing what you're doing. It feels good. Of course if anyone asks this never happened. And if you say one word I'll punch your teeth out."

Todd chuckled. "Yeah you're back all right." 

Xi looked puzzled. "Why does it bother you to let people know when you need to be comforted?"

"It's a guy thing Xi," Todd told him. "Guys ain't supposed to be well…weak." 

"Thanks a lot Toad," Lance grumbled. 

"I know the feeling," Xi said softly. "We all felt that way back in the lab." 

"You mean, with the others like you?" Lance asked. 

"We had a bond," Xi explained. "We knew we needed to be there for each other in order to stay strong. When we were afraid we huddled together. We could sense each other's fear and need. We realized that we were not alone in our pain and that made us close. And that closeness made us stronger." 

They didn't speak for a few minutes as they sat there in silence. Lance pulled away just as Fred and Lifeline walked in. "How are you feeling?" Lifeline asked.

"A little weak and tired but otherwise fine," Lance shrugged. 

Lifeline checked him over. "Yeah you look better too," He nodded. 

"That's because we were here to make him feel better," Todd said.

"That's right," Fred grinned. "Friendship is the best medicine. "Come here buddy!"

"Oh no, Blob no…" Lance tried to back away but Fred gave him a crushing hug. "Can't breathe…"

"Don't worry buddy," Fred messed up his hair. "Freddy's gonna make it all better!"

"Awww!" Todd giggled. 

"I think I was better off when I didn't remember anything," Lance groaned.

The next day Lance was allowed to leave the hospital. "You really recovered fast this time," Todd said.

"Yeah well thanks to the treatment Lifeline has," Lance shrugged. "At least I won't be flat on my back all week. I think I'll surprise Kitty. You didn't say anything about it to the X-Men did you? I really don't want them knowing about my condition." 

"Oh yeah like we're really gonna announce it to the X-Geeks," Todd rolled his eyes. "I only talked to Kitty anyway." 

"As long as you didn't tell her I had an attack," Lance sighed. 

"Don't worry," Todd waved. "I told her you were in the stockade. That you trashed a couple of tanks and Hawk locked you up." 

"Oh…" Then Lance went pale. "YOU TOLD HER **_WHAT_**?" 


End file.
